Spooks
by Danja
Summary: The Nelsons clash with a secretive government agency. R
1. Chapter 1

**Spooks  
**

**Chapter One**

* * *

AIR FORCE SPECIAL ACTIVITIES CENTER (AFSAC)

FORT BELVOIR, VIRGINIA

* * *

"So … what can I do for you, Doctor?" said General Bauer.

"I've been told that your department deals with … paranormal phenomena," said Dr. Bellows. He sat across from the general, a massive oak desk separating the two men. A maroon leather briefcase sat at his feet.

"I'm not at liberty to discuss the exact mission of this command,' said the general with a Cheshire cat grin. Brigadier General Leighton Bauer, Commander of AFSAC, was a squat, barrel-chested man in his early sixties. He had a pug nose, square jaw, and crew-cut gray hair. "All I can say is that we investigate … threats … to both the Air Force and our nation's security." It was a typically bureaucratic explanation -- it was revealing yet vague, saying a great deal without saying much of anything at all.

_It seems I have come to the right place, _thought Dr. Bellows as he opened his briefcase. He then pulled out a large, bulging file folder bound with a rubber band, handed it to the general, and said, "I have some material that might be of interest to you."

General Bauer accepted the file folder from Dr. Bellows, removed the rubber band, and opened the file.

" 'Major Nelson,' " said General Bauer, reading the tab on the file. He then exclaimed, "Major _ANTHONY _Nelson?"

"That is correct," said Dr. Bellows.

General Bauer let out a low whistle. "I've heard stories about that guy," he said. "Strange stories." He then added, "_Bizarre_ stories."

"He's a Colonel now," said Dr. Bellows. "It's been some years since I opened that file."

General Bauer thumbed through the file. "Invisible buildings … growing and shrinking hotels … snow in the middle of summer," he said.

"You might wish to investigate his wife as well," said Dr. Bellows.

"Whatever for?" General Bauer asked.

"These … phenomena … frequently happen in _her_ presence," said Dr. Bellows. "She may well be the _cause_ of it all."

"How so?" General Bauer asked.

"I can't quite put my finger on it," said Dr. Bellows. "There's just something about her, something I can't quite explain."

"Anything else you wish to tell me, Doctor?" said General Bauer.

"Now that I think about it, there's this bottle at his house that he's absolutely obsessed with," said Dr. Bellows. "He's gone to great lengths to protect it, to safeguard it."

"Has Colonel Nelson told you _anything_ about this ... this ... 'bottle'?" General Bauer asked.

"He says it's a family heirloom," Dr. Bellows replied.

"I can understand why he might want to protect it," said General Bauer. "It clearly holds sentimental value for him."

"I don't know many men who are willing to risk their entire careers for a family heirloom," said Dr. Bellows.

General Bauer's eyebrows shot upwards. "And he ... _has?_" he inquired.

Dr. Bellows nodded. "Yes, General," he said. "Several times, in fact." He then added, "It's all right there in that file."

General Bauer closed the file folder. "I'll have my people look into this," he said. "I'll keep this folder as part of the investigation."

Dr. Bellows stood up and shook General Bauer's hand. "Thank you, General," he said.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

* * *

"How do we deal with Nelson?" asked one of Bauer's agents. He was a bald, burly black man wearing the standard uniform of black two-piece suit, white dress shirt, black tie, black wraparound sunglasses, and black wingtip shoes.

"Let's do what we do best," General Bauer replied. "Put the entire family under surveillance. Be as unobtrusive as possible."

"What about NASA?" asked the Man in Black.

"Leave NASA out of this," General Bauer replied. "Security's as tight as a drum." He then added as an afterthought, "It will be easier if we focus on his house."

* * *

The broiling Florida sun beat down upon the green chalk-lined soccer field. It was Thursday afternoon varsity soccer practice at Cocoa High School. Figures in gold and black raced up and down and down the field. The air was filled with a cacophony of grunts and cries of "I'm open!" and "Set it up!"

Anthony Nelson Jr., aged 17, was almost the spitting image of his astronaut father. His 6'1" frame was athletic yet muscular; his hair was short and wavy-brown. Today, Anthony ("Tony", to his friends) was playing defense and wearing a gold uniform with trimmed with black (offense was wearing the away uniforms -- black with gold trim). He darted to and fro up and down the field, passing, kicking, and dribbling all the way.

* * *

Unnoticed by the team, a tall lanky figure with short, curly dark hair stood to one side of the field. He wore the standard Man in Black uniform: black two-piece suit, white dress shirt, black tie, black wingtip shoes, and black wraparound sunglasses.

The Man in Black took several shots of Tony Jr. with a digital camera.

Shot of Tony Jr. dribbling the ball down the field. _Click._

Shot of Tony Jr. passing the ball. _Click. _Shots of Tony Jr. dribbling the ball. _Click. Click._

The Man in Black looked at the pictures of Tony Jr. in his preview screen. Tony Jr. appeared onscreen as being little more than a black-and-gold blur kicking a soccer ball.

_Strange, _he thought sourly. _The kid doesn't photograph very well._

_I'll have Technical Services run a diagnostic on this camera, _he added as an afterthought.

* * *

"Man, that sun is brutal!" exclaimed Tony Jr. as he made his way back to the bench.

"Check out that weird guy in the stands," said one of the other players sitting on the bench.

"_What_ weird guy?" asked Tony Jr.

"Some weird guy in a black suit was in the stands taking pictures of us," said the player. "He didn't look like anyone _I _knew."

Tony Jr. looked up towards the stands. The Man in Black had disappeared without a trace.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

* * *

For the better part of a week, an ominous-looking black van sat across the street from the Nelsons' house.

Inside the van, two uniformed Men in Black -- one having slicked-back blonde hair, the other having close-cropped dark hair -- sat in front of a reel-to-reel tape recorder, listening to and taking notes of the Nelsons' every word (Their house and their phones having now been bugged.)

* * *

"Master, I am worried," said Jeannie. She and Colonel Nelson were standing in the living room, peering through the curtains at the black van.

"What about?" said Colonel Nelson. He was dressed in a bathrobe, slippers, and pajama bottoms.

"That van across the street … it has been sitting there for a week now," said Jeannie. "I have not seen anyone come or go from that van." She then added, "I wonder if they are spying on us?"

"I'll call the police," said Colonel Nelson. "We may have a peeping tom on our hands."

* * *

"POLICE! OPEN UP!" The police officer barked as he knocked on the rear van door.

The rear van door opened. The blonde-haired Man in Black emerged from the van.

"May I help you, officer?" said the Man in Black.

"We've had a complaint about you sitting out here for a week," said the police officer. "What's going on?"

"Customs office," said the Man in Black.

"_CUSTOMS OFFICE?_" exclaimed the police officer.

"USDA," said the Man in Black, stalling for time.

The police officer sighed and said, "_WHATEVER_ you are, do you have any I.D.?" He then added, "I'm gonna need to see a warrant, too."

"This does not concern you," said the Man in Black silkily. "I would suggest you leave."

"You're in _no_ position to give _ME_ orders," growled the police officer. "Either you move this van right now, or I will have you arrested and this van impounded! Is that understood?" He then added as an afterthought, "I don't care _WHO_ you work for!"

The Man in Black reached inside his coat. The police officer, upon seeing the Man in Black reach inside his coat, instinctively drew his pistol and barked, "KEEP YOUR HANDS WHERE I CAN SEE EM!"

The Man in Black retrieved from his coat pocket a small cigar-sized silver cylinder topped with a clear plastic dome.

"What's that?" barked the police officer.

The Man in Black touched a hidden switch in back of the cylinder. All at once, a blinding white light flashed from the dome.

All at once, the police officer's jaw slackened. His shoulders slumped forward. He lowered his pistol slightly.

The police officer was now deeply hypnotized.

"Lower your weapon," commanded the Man in Black.

The hypnotized police officer obediently lowered his pistol down to his side.

"You have now forgotten why you have come here," said the blonde-haired Man in Black. "You came here … for no reason."

"No reason," mumbled the dazed -- and now thoroughly entranced -- police officer. His eyes were now as wide as saucers.

"I do not exist. I have never existed. This conversation never took place," intoned the Man in Black lullingly. "This is all just a dream."

"Just … a dream," slurred the police officer. A thin stream of drool was now running down one side of his mouth. Whatever will the police officer had possessed before he met the Men in Black was now reduced to the consistency of oatmeal.

"You will now get back into your cruiser, drive away, and leave us alone, never to return," said the Man in Black. He then repeated for emphasis, "I do not exist. I have never existed. You came here for no reason."

"No reason," mumbled the police officer. He holstered his pistol and obediently turned and staggered back towards his police cruiser parked directly behind the van.

"That's right … _that's _right," cooed the Man in Black softly after the police officer. "You came here for no reason ... No reason at all." He then added, "This is _all _just a dream."

* * *

As the police cruiser sped away, Tony Nelson burst out of his house wearing little more than a bathrobe, slippers, and pajama bottoms.

"HEY! HEY! WHAT'RE YOU DOING!" Tony cried after the speeding cruiser. "Aren't you gonna _DO_ anything? _HEY!_"

Jeannie rushed to Anthony's side. "Anthony, Anthony," she said soothingly, putting her arms around him. "There is nothing more we can do."

"I'm gonna confront those guys," said Tony as began to stride towards the van.

"Anthony, _STOP!_" Jeannie cried as she stepped in front of his path.

"Stay out of this," Tony growled.

"They could be armed!" exclaimed Jeannie as she braced herself against Tony's chest. "If they were too much for the _police_ to handle, what makes you think _YOU_ can do any better?"

Tony put his arm around Jeannie. "You have a point," he said softly.

"Once they have what they came for, they will surely leave," said Jeannie.

Tony kissed Jeannie tenderly on the forehead. "I guess you're right," he said. "I'm sure the other shoe will drop soon."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

* * *

"What do we have on the Nelsons?" asked General Bauer.

"Colonel Nelson's human … he photographs," replied a Man in Black standing before Bauer's desk. He opened a file folder and presented the General with an 8" by 10" photograph of Colonel Nelson, in his pajamas and slippers, picking up the morning newspaper in his driveway.

"Anything else on Nelson?" inquired General Bauer.

"Nothing eventful, Sir," replied the Man in Black.

"What about his kid?"

"His son photographs, but not very well," said the Man in Black as he presented the General with an 8" by 10" picture of a blurred Tony Jr. kicking a soccer ball.

"Anything else on the kid?"

"Nothing, Sir."

"What do we have on the wife?"

"Here's where it gets interesting," said the Man in Black as he thumbed through the file folder. "For some reason, she calls Colonel Nelson 'Master' … I'm wondering if it's some sort of sexual thing?"

"Colonel Nelson's and his wife's … sexual peccadilloes … are beyond the scope of this department's mission," said General Bauer icily. "Anything else?"

Subject Closed.

"The wife doesn't photograph," said The Man in Black as he presented the General with a 8" by 10" photo of a hair stylist at a beauty salon hovering over a clear plastic bib floating in an empty chair.

"What am I supposed to be looking at?" asked General Bauer.

"Mrs. Nelson, Sir," said the Man in Black. "As I said, she doesn't photograph. However, we did manage to capture her on the Dooley Eight-Thousand camera," he added as he presented the General with an 8" x 10" black-and-white photo of Jeannie in sneakers and a track suit jogging in a park.

_Five million dollar system and they can't do any better than black-and white! _The General thought angrily. "Reminds me of the Calrissians on Zeta 4," he said. "They don't photograph, either."

"You think she's a Calrissian?" asked the Man in Black.

"She _can't _be a Calrissian. The Calrissians are 2-foot tall praying mantises," General Bauer replied.

"If she_ IS _an alien, how did she _get_ here?" the Man in Black asked. "We've no recent records of any UFO crashes."

"Bellows's file dates back to the sixties. Check the archives," the General replied.

"Yes, Sir."

General Bauer cradled his chin in his palm, deep in thought. _The bottle … the bottle. What _IS_ it about that _BOTTLE?

"That bottle," said the General. "That bottle may be the key to all this."

"Sir?" asked the Man in Black.

"According to Bellows's file, Colonel Nelson has this elaborately decorated purple enamel bottle that he's utterly obsessed with," General Bauer replied. "So much so that he's been willing to risk his entire _career_ for it!"

"What's so special about that bottle?" asked the Man in Black.

"It could belong to his wife. It could be how she came to Earth," General Bauer replied. "It could be a ship … an interstellar portal." General Bauer paused. "We could be looking at the advance force of an alien _invasion!_"

"With all due respect, Sir, you're reading a great deal into this," said the Man in Black.

"It's our _JOB_ to read into this!" the General barked, slamming papers down onto his desk for emphasis. "There could be an invasion going on right underneath our noses!"

"I see, Sir," said the Man in Black. "Permission to speak freely, Sir."

"Granted," General Bauer replied.

"If you don't mind my saying, Sir, a bottle seems like a terrible staging area for an invasion," said the Man in Black. "You'd think they'd go with a much larger vessel … one that could accommodate an invading force."

"We're dealing with _ALIENS_ here," said the General, paranoia now creeping into his voice. "With their advanced technology, we must be prepared for _ANYTHING._"

"Yes, Sir," said the Man in Black with a sigh.

"For all we know, she's a sleeper _agent!_"

"Sir, there's no record of Mrs. Nelson posing any real national security issues," said the Man in Black. "To put it bluntly, all we have are innuendo and tall tales from Dr. Bellows."

"I want the Nelsons brought in for processing," said General Bauer.

* * *

2:00 a.m.

A black armored personnel carrier pulls up in front of the Nelsons' home. Following the armored personnel carrier was a large, ominous-looking black van.

A SWAT team clad in black body armor and armed with AR-15s poured out of the van and APC and surrounded the house.

"FBI! SEARCH WARRANT!" cried out one SWAT team member as another beat down the Nelsons' front door with a steel battering ram.

"GET THE BOTTLE! GET THE BOTTLE!" cried another SWAT team member as they streamed through the Nelsons' living room.

--

"FBI! SEARCH WARRANT!" cried out one SWAT team member as they burst their way into Tony and Jeannie's bedroom.

"What the devil is going on here?!" cried Colonel Nelson as several armed SWAT team members stood over him and Jeannie lying in bed, their AR-15s aimed at the Nelsons' heads.

"Stand up and put your hands behind your head!" the SWAT team member commanded in reply.

"Where's your warrant?" Colonel Nelson demanded angrily.

"DO AS I SAY!" the SWAT team member shouted back.

"Anthony, what is going on?" Jeannie asked as a SWAT team member handcuffed her from behind.

"They're not FBI," said Colonel Nelson as another SWAT team member handcuffed him from behind. "It's a fig leaf."

"They are not?" asked Jeannie.

"_REAL_ FBI SWAT teams don't wear _unmarked uniforms_," Colonel Nelson explained, getting in a dig at the SWAT team.

"We've got the kid!" said another SWAT team member.

"We've got the bottle!" cried a third SWAT team member from the hallway as he held Jeannie's bottle aloft.

"You sure?" asked the first SWAT team member.

" 'Purple enamel with gold trim' … just like it says in the file," replied the third SWAT team member.

"Awright, people … we have what we came for," said the first SWAT team member. "Let's get em processed!"


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

* * *

**AREA 51**

**SOMEWHERE IN NEVADA**

* * *

"We've finished our analysis of the bottle," said a white-coated technician to General Bauer.

"And?" said the General.

"It's not a ship," said the technician. "There's no evidence of any propulsion system."

"Maybe it's a portal of some sort."

"We've run X-Rays, MRIs, and CT scans on the bottle," said the technician. "We've found no evidence of any sort of electronic and/or mechanical apparatus.

"This would seem to be nothing more than a plain, ordinary bottle," the technician concluded.

"Thank you," said General Bauer.

"However, we _DID_ find what appears to be … well, _FURNITURE_ … inside the bottle," said the technician.

Bauer's eyebrows shot upwards. "_FURNITURE?_" he exclaimed.

The technician leafed through his notes and said, "A sofa, several pillows, some cushions …" The technician paused. "You'd think someone_ LIVED _in there."

"Who _LIVES_ in a _BOTTLE?_" General Bauer asked.

"I cannot say, Sir," said the technician.

"Maybe it _IS_ a ship," said General Bauer. "Why else would this … _being_ … LIVE in there?"

"How can it be a ship?" the technician asked. "There's no propulsion system, no navigation system ...

"If it _IS _a ship, how is it powered? How do they steer it?" the technician asked.

"We are dealing with a highly advanced civilization," General Bauer replied. "One whose technology surpasses our own by several million years."

The technician sighed. "Yes, Sir," he said, surrendering_. _

_The old man's lost it now, _the technician thought.

"That will be all," said General Bauer.

The first technician turned and walked away. Another white-coated technician approached General Bauer.

"We've finished our chemical analysis of the bottle," said the second technician to General Bauer.

"And?" General Bauer grunted in reply.

The technician leafed through the notes on his clipboard. "It appears to be made of some sort of ceramic material," he said. "It's comprised of eighty-percent kaolin clay, ten-percent silica dioxide, and ten-percent water."

"Is there anything _extraterrestrial_ in there?" asked General Bauer.

The technician leafed through his notes once more. "I'm afraid not, Sir," he said. "Everything appears to be of earthly origin."

_Damn. _"Thank you," said General Bauer.

* * *

"Welcome … to Area 51," boomed General Bauer. Behind him sat a massive 30-ton six-foot-thick nuclear blast door.

Bauer's voice echoed in the cavernous hangar that was part of the top-secret military base known as Area 51. The hangar itself was a beehive of activity, technicians and soldiers scurrying to and fro all around them.

Before him were the Nelsons -- Jeannie kneeling on the ground before the General, Anthony and Tony Jr. standing directly behind her. All three of them were clad in military-issue orange jumpsuits and handcuffed behind their backs. A brace of camouflaged Marines armed with AR-15s stood guard over the family.

"I am General Leighton Bauer, head of the Air Force Special Activities Center," said General Bauer to the Nelsons. He then added, "Take a good look at that blast door behind me. As far as you three are concerned, the world begins and ends at that door."

General Bauer gestured towards the door. "This … is a thirty ton, six-foot-thick, lead-lined, nuclear blast door," he said, slamming the palm of his hand against the door for emphasis. "This door … cost Uncle Sam twelve million dollars to make and is capable of withstanding a nuclear explosion.

"Nobody enters or leaves this facility except through this door…" said General Bauer. After a dramatic pause, he then added, "… _NOBODY_."

"If you're gonna keep us here, you'd better have something more than 'Gee, those Nelsons are weird' to go on," said Colonel Nelson. "NASA is going to be wondering what happened to one of their astronauts."

General Bauer walked up to Colonel Nelson and got in his face. "I can arrange to have all three of you declared legally _dead_," he said with a sneer.

"You've no grounds for keeping us here!" cried Colonel Nelson.

Ignoring Colonel Nelson, the General turned his attention to Jeannie. "Now, I'm going to ask you again," he said to her. "WHAT PLANET ARE YOU _FROM?_"

"For the five-thousandth time, _EARTH!_" Jeannie shot back in reply.

"You're lying," said General Bauer.

"What do you mean?" Jeannie asked.

"I've read your file," said the General. "Snow in the middle of summer, harem girls suddenly appearing in Colonel Nelson's living room, growing and shrinking hotels ...

General Bauer bent over, stood in Jeannie's face, and grinned, "_NORMAL _people can't do these things."

_Bellows … this thing just screams Bellows, _Colonel Nelson thought. _It would be just like him to keep a file on me all these years._

"Maybe it was me, maybe it was not," said Jeannie. "What does it matter?"

"How do I know you're not a sleeper agent for an alien invasion force?" barked General Bauer.

_He thinks we're _ALIENS! Colonel Nelson thought. "If she _WAS _a 'sleeper agent', would she not have contacted her superiors?" he asked.

"Was I asking _YOU?_" General Bauer snapped.

"You might've learned that had you done more than two weeks worth of surveillance on our house!" Colonel Nelson shot back sarcastically.

"So what if I _CAN_ do these things that I am accused of," said Jeannie. "Since when is it a crime to be different from most people?"

"If you're NOT an alien, what _ARE _you then?" General Bauer asked Jeannie.

"Who I am and what I do are of no concern to this government," Jeannie replied icily.

General Bauer bent over, stood in Jeannie's face, and hissed, "I'm _making_ it my concern."

"I have committed no crime against this nation," said Jeannie. "I am not bound to indulge your personal curiosity."

"You are not in charge here, Mrs. Nelson!" General Bauer roared. "If you're _not_ an alien, what _ARE _you?"

Jeannie sighed resignedly. "I am … a genie," she confessed softly.

"A _WHAT?_"

"A genie," said Jeannie.

"A real live, card-carrying, honest-to-God, Robin Williams, Arabian Nights-style _GENIE?_" General Bauer asked.

"Yes," Jeannie replied quietly.

"Stop it, you're embarrassing her!" Tony Jr. shouted.

"_QUIET!_" General Bauer snapped.

Tony Jr. lurched forward, only to be blocked by two Marines wielding AR-15s.

"Prove it," said General Bauer to Jeannie. "Prove to me you're a genie."

"What would you have me do?" Jeannie asked.

"Mmm, I dunno … pass through this blast door, maybe?" General Bauer asked as he gestured towards the nuclear blast door behind him.

"We're finished," said Colonel Nelson in a stage whisper to Tony Jr.

"What do you mean?" Tony Jr. asked.

"Your mother can't pass through a sealed door," Colonel Nelson explained. "She was locked in a safe one time."

"You told me about that," said Tony Jr. "You had to hire a safecracker to get her out."

"Did I hear you correctly?" General Bauer asked Colonel Nelson. "She can't pass through a sealed door?"

"That is correct," said Colonel Nelson quietly.

"Is this true?" General Bauer asked Jeannie. "You can't pass through a sealed door?"

"That is correct," Jeannie said quietly.

"Oh, pity poo," cackled General Bauer. "I guess you three are _stuck_ here, then."

Jeannie clenched her jaw and snorted. _I am a genie of the royal house of Basenji, _she thought defiantly, her face now red and contorted with rage. _I will not permit myself to be defeated by a mere_ DOOR!

_This is ridiculous, _Jeannie thought. _This is but an ordinary door, fashioned by mortal hands. There is _no_ enchantment on this door whatsoever._

_There is absolutely no reason on the Most High's green earth why _I_ cannot at least do _SOMETHING _about this door._

"Is there anything any of _YOU _would like to add?" General Bauer smugly asked the Nelsons.

_Come on, you can do this, _Jeannie thought._ This_ HAS _to work._

_This is for my Master. _

_This is for my _SON.

"I would like my bottle, please," said Jeannie.

"Whatever for?" General Bauer inquired.

"We will be going now," Jeannie replied.

General Bauer chuckled and said, "Mrs. Nelson, I really don't think that's …"

Jeannie blinked. All at once, the air became filled with the sound of wailing Klaxons and a feminine-sounding computerized voice intoning, "BLAST DOOR OFFLINE … BLAST DOOR OFFLINE ... BLAST DOOR OFFLINE."

_What the…? _General Bauer thought as he turned around. The massive 30-ton nuclear blast door had disappeared into thin air!

"Look at your feet, General," said Jeannie.

General Bauer looked down on the ground. Sitting at his feet was none other than the previously-massive nuclear blast door, now shrunk to the size of a baseball.

General Bauer picked up the shrunken door and held it before his face. A crowd of soldiers and technicians began to gather around him.

_Twelve million dollars, _General Bauer thought, his face now ashen. _Twelve … million … dollars._

_I said I cannot _PASS THROUGH _a sealed door, _Jeannie clucked to General Bauer telepathically.

"Way to go, Mom!" Tony Jr. cried happily.

Jeannie looked up at General Bauer and said, "My bottle ... _Please_."

_You poor little man, _Jeannie thought. _You are not used to your quarry being able to fight back now, are you? _

General Bauer gestured towards a technician and whispered something in his ear. The technician turned and ran away.

"How much is it worth to you to keep us here?" said Colonel Nelson. "Is it worth the trouble?

"What part of 'We're not aliens' do you not _understand?_"

General Bauer looked at the empty space where the massive blast door once stood. _He's right_, he thought.

The technician returned, carrying Jeannie's bottle on a small cart. He gingerly took the bottle and set it before Jeannie.

"You're letting us go?" asked Colonel Nelson.

"There are some … preparations … that must be made first," said General Bauer.

"Oh, that is all right. We will let ourselves out," said Jeannie. With that, she blinked, and all of the Nelsons disappeared.

"HEY!" General Bauer called out to the air. "Would you mind fixing the _DOOR?_"

The baseball-sized blast door in the palm of General Bauer's hand suddenly disappeared. General Bauer looked around to find the door restored to its original 30-ton, six-foot-thick dimensions.

"Thanks," General Bauer called out to the air.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

* * *

"You wished to see me?" said Dr. Bellows.

"Yes," said General Hancock. "I've received a report from AFSAC regarding Colonel Nelson." On his desk sat Dr. Bellows's file on Colonel Anthony Nelson.

"Yes, General," said Dr. Bellows.

"I've also received … an anonymous tip … that he and his family were dragged out of their home at two in the morning and carted off to Area 51 for quote-unquote 'processing'," said the General, framing the word 'processing' with his index and middle fingers..

"I know nothing about that, Sir," said Dr. Bellows

"Tell me … were you planning on informing _me _at some point about this investigation into Colonel Nelson's private _LIFE?_" General Hancock asked sarcastically.

"Of course, Sir," said Dr. Bellows.

"As commander here at Cape Kennedy, I have a right to know what's going on with my astronauts."

"Of course, Sir," said Dr. Bellows.

General Hancock opened the file and rifled through the papers. "According to this file, you have born witness to ... I quote ... 'harem girls in Colonel Nelson's living room', 'snow in the middle of summer', and 'growing and shrinking hotels.' "

"Yes, General."

General Hancock stood up and slammed the papers down on his desk. "Would you mind telling me what the blazes this has to do with Colonel Nelson's work here at_ NASA?_"

"I am deeply concerned about his mental health status," Dr. Bellows replied smoothly. "I should not have to tell you that it has an impact on his mission readiness."

"If that's the case, why in God's name did you send him all the way to _AFSAC?_" General Hancock snapped. "You're a psychiatrist … could you not have treated him HERE?"

"I wished to examine all avenues of inquiry," Dr. Bellows replied.

"Has _Colonel Nelson _reported any of this phenomena?" asked General Hancock.

"No, General," Dr. Bellows replied. "These are primarily mine own observations."

General Hancock leaned back in his chair. "So," he said. "It is _YOU_ … and not Colonel Nelson … who has been seeing this phenomena." He rifled through Bellows's file on Colonel Nelson and added, "It is_ YOU _who has been seeing this 'snow in the middle of summer', these 'harem girls in Colonel Nelson's living room', and these 'growing and shrinking hotels'."

Dr. Bellows blushed slightly. "Yes, General," he said.

General Hancock glowered at Dr. Bellows. "I'm beginning to think that it is also _YOU_ who is in need of therapy," he said.

Dr. Bellows lowered his head slightly. "Yes, General," he said softly.

_Colonel Nelson, you have done it to me again,_ Dr. Bellows thought.

* * *

"If you weren't able to break out of that safe, how were you able to shrink the door?" Tony Jr. asked Jeannie later that night at dinner.

"I cannot say," Jeannie replied. "All I know is that I was not about to let that buffoon General Bauer keep the three of us imprisoned at Area 51 for the rest of our lives.

"Short answer … I took a chance," Jeannie concluded.

"My guess is that it was psychological," said Colonel Nelson. "For two thousand years, people have been telling your mother what she could and could not accomplish. No one ever pushed her to her breaking point." _Until_ NOW, he thought.

"That is as good an explanation as any, Anthony," said Jeannie.

"I'm glad you were able to pull it off, Mom," said Tony Jr.

Jeannie smiled. _Me too, _she thought.

* * *

All the while this was happening, an ominous-looking black van sat parked across the street from the Nelsons' house …

THE END


End file.
